There were plenty of high-octane action vehicles to keep audiences on their toes throughout 2021.
From "Red Notice" to "Gunpowder Milkshake" to "The Ice Road" to "Army of the Dead," there was
no shortage of options for action fans on Netflix. With so many action originals to choose from,
there's a chance you might've missed some gems of the genre that were released throughout the year.
Here's a look at the best edge-of-your-seat action rides you might have missed on Netflix in 2021.
The unconquerable Jean-Claude Van Damme reminds audiences why people call him "The Muscles from
Brussels" in the delightful action-comedy film "The Last Mercenary." The French-language film
features the legendary action star as a retired secret service operative named Richard Brumére,
who's professionally known as "The Mist" thanks to his ability to disappear without a trace.
After getting out of the business, he has to return to France for a
new and very personal mission that will require all of his old fighting skills.
Why? Because Brumére's son, whom he's never met, has been falsely implicated
in a drug-trafficking scheme and inadvertently finds himself ensnared in a mafia operation.
If you haven't yet seen the new moves Van Damme throws down in "The Last Mercenary,"
you won't regret adding this fun film to your streaming queue.
Directed by Ferdinando Cito Filomarino, "Beckett" features "Malcolm & Marie" and
"Tenet" standout John David Washington as an A merican tourist in Greece with his girlfriend,
April, played by Alicia Vikander. When a tragic accident strikes the couple,
Beckett finds himself ensnared in a deadly scheme that leaves him unable to trust anyone in a city
where he already understands so little. Not only will audiences be left guessing
until the very end about who's involved in this vicious cycle of violence, but there are also some
daringly real stunts that are bound to get your blood pumping. Shot entirely on location -- with
no studio or greenscreens -- Becket is a visceral thrill ride from start to finish.
Another 2021 action gem that's worth your attention is "Sweet Girl,"
a film that stars Jason Momoa alongside Isabela Merced in a very twisty revenge ride. The movie
features Momoa as Ray Cooper, a man who watches helplessly as his wife dies of a long illness
after a pharmaceutical company greedily pulls a potentially life-saving drug from the market
days before she's due to try the treatment. As Ray desperately looks for answers, he finds himself
caught up in something bigger than he realized. "You have no idea what you're getting into."
What then unfolds is a high-stakes chase as Ray searches for the truth and vengeance against
the people who hurt their family and so many others. And if you think you know what's coming,
trust us when we say you're in for some serious surprises.
Not every action hero is necessarily a good guy.
Mary Elizabeth Winstead stars in "Kate" as a ruthlessly efficient gun-for-hire.
Just as she considers getting out of this life and into a more traditional one,
she discovers the hard way that she's been poisoned with a deadly toxin and has only a
brief amount of time to get revenge against the one who put her name on the kill list this time.
"How much time do I have?" "A day, maybe."
Not only will you get to see some very, very slick action sequences unfold throughout "Kate," but the
film also boasts a whole lot of heart -- even if its eponymous heroine is far from perfect.
Director Jeymes Samuel makes a triumphant feature-length debut with "The Harder They Fall."
This captivating Western offers a highly stylized adventure for some of the most
intriguing but underrepresented Black figures in American history.
At the center of the action is Jonathan Majors as Nat Love,
a man who gathers his faithful gunslinging friends to seek revenge against Idris Elba's Rufus Buck,
who's just gotten out of jail. Love will now stop at nothing to exact his revenge,
leading up to the two fearless crews' inevitable collision.
"Man or devil, this gonna be Buck's last day amongst the living."
With a phenomenal cast, breathlessly intense action, and fearless direction,
"The Harder They Fall" is one of the year's best movies. Don't let this one pass you by.
"What y'all waiting around for? You think destiny's coming to you?"
Fans of "Army of the Dead" standout Ludwig Dieter get to see how he came to be such a safecracker
extraordinaire in "Army of Thieves." "What the hell are you doing?"
"I'm warming up my instruments." "Oh, alright."
Matthias Schweighöfer both returns to his role and steps behind the camera as director,
with the story taking audiences back in time to when Dieter is still just a simple bank
clerk named Sebastian who has a not-so-secret obsession with Hans Wagner's notorious safes.
Sebastian finally gets a chance to put his hobby to work when he's recruited
into an international ring of thieves who plan to target the Wagner safes in Europe,
just as people are starting to panic about the zombie uprising underway in Las Vegas.
"Now I'm nervous." "That's good."
Not only does the film give Dieter fans a lot more context about why he's so willing to join
the dangerous heist in "Army of the Dead," but "Army of Thieves" is also an exhilarating action
adventure in its own right. For those audiences who got
a rush out of watching the almost-one-man powerhouse picture that was "The Guilty,"
the action thriller "Dhamaka" might be right up your alley. The film, from writer-director
Ram Madhvani, is a Hindi-language remake of the 2013 Korean film "The Terror Live." Actor Kartik
Aaryan leads the action as disgraced journalist Arjun, who works as a radio DJ but desperately
wants to get back into primetime TV news. After he receives a call warning that a
major bridge will be blown up -- a warning that actually comes to pass -- he seizes the
opportunity to get the broadcast exclusive of a lifetime by continuing to converse with the
caller on-air. While it's sure to be a ratings bonanza, Arjun is forced to make some morally
questionable decisions. Worse than that, his own reputation -- and even life -- may be in jeopardy.
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